CUDDALORE: An angry mob attacked a dalit colony and torched their houses and belongings at Pacharapakkam village near Vadalur in Cuddalore district in north Tamil Nadu on Tuesday morning. The provocation apparently was that a group of dalit men teased a non-dalit girl. Eight dalits were injured in the attack while eight houses and two two-wheelers were set on fire. The mob also damaged a van belong to a dalit.

Police said a group of dalit men teased a girl belonging to a dominant caste in the village. The girl complained to her parents and relatives. Angered by the incident, the non-dalits went on the rampage, attacking the dalits living in a nearby colony. They set dalit houses and 2-wheelers on fire and damaged the windscreens of a van. A police team from Vadalur and nearby stations rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control. More than 100 policemen were posted at the village to prevent any untoward incident.

The incident comes just days after a few villages in Dharmapuri witnessed caste violence after a dalit youth married a girl from the Vanniyar caste, higher up in the caste echelon. Violence erupted on November 7 after the girl's father committed suicide, upset with the inter-caste marriage.